What an Impact

While subbing at Haus Bad Riedlingen, we had a chance to meet three BFA alumni who had graduated a little less than 10 years ago.  They were returning to the dorm in which they had lived.  It was heart touching to hear them talk about their time at BFA and HBR.  One of the former students shared that he remembered the day that his parents dropped him off.  He described how much he did not want them to leave him there, how much he was not ready to attend BFA, how upset he was at his situation.  He shared that difficult time with us, with a smile on his face, as he continued to walk through the dorm.  The smile was there because as we entered each room, a different memory was sparked in his mind.  By the time we returned to the main entrance, he was describing how he felt on graduation day.  He described how he did not want to leave BFA or HBR, how he was not ready to move on to the next stage of his life without his dorm brothers or those who had touched his life from BFA, and how upset he was that his situation was calling for exactly that, moving on.  Once he left, we had some time to interact with the boys who live in HBR this year, and it made me wonder if they would one day return with such fond memories of both their school and dorm.  I pray that they do.

D-Day - A Personal History

We met a British veteran at Point Du Hoc who captained one of the boats that brought American soldiers to both Utah and Omaha beaches on Day 1 of the Normandy invasion.  As he shared a little of his story with us, the students were intrigued by this 88 year old and the description of events from 67 years ago.  You could still hear the pain in his voice as he shared that they were expected to lose 50% of the men that he and his fellow captains brought into battle.  As I said good bye and thanked him for his time and service, his grip on my hand was strong enough to make a lasting impression.  

Normandy

66 students and 9 chaperons boarded a double decker bus at 10pm on Thursday to travel from Kandern, Germany to Normandy, France as part of the junior class trip. Rob was fortunate to be one of the sponsors. It was a blessing to spend 84 fast paced, sleep deprived hours getting to know these students better. We slept on the bus for 2 of the 4 nights, which contributed to much of the class bonding that takes place on this annual trip. We had an opportunity to visit many historic sites and reflect together on the tragic events that impacted history.  From hearing about great acts of heroism to the variety of emotions that come with visiting the German, Canadian and US cemeteries, there is no doubt that this trip will have a lasting affect on our students.

This song captured my heart a few years ago and that began my prayer....   Lord here I am.


~Heather

Here I Am

Downhere

from the album Ending Is Beginning

Buy on Amazon

Play sample

Sometimes Your calling, comes in dream 
Sometimes in comes in the Spirit's breeze 
You reach for the deepest hope in me 
And call out for the things of eternity 

But I'm a man, of dust and stains, 
You move in me, so I can say 

Chorus
Here I am, Lord send me 
All of my life, I make an offering, 
Here I am, Lord send me 
Somehow my story is a part of Your plan, 
Here I am 

When setbacks and failures, and upset plans 
Test my faith and leave me with empty hands 
Are You not the closest when it's hardest to stand 
I know that You will finish what You began 

And these broken parts You will redeem 
Become the song that I can sing 

Chorus

Overwhelmed by the thought of my weakness 
And the fear that I'll fail You in the end 
In this mess, I'm just one of the pieces, 
I can't put this together but You can 

Chorus

Here I Am, all my life an offering to You, to You 
Somehow my story is a part of Your plan 
Here I am

BFA Opening Ceremonies

BFA Opening Ceremonies kicked off the 2011-2012 school year on Tuesday.  The seniors marched into a packed auditorium carrying flags representing the countries from where our students call home.  The Director, Mr. Phil Peters, delivered an opening address.  Using his canoe for the prop, he shared God's word and encouraged us all to be prepared for the this year's journey, through the quiet waters and the rolling rapids.  He also interviewed the 1st graders (the class of 2023) and as you can tell, we received some funny responses from these 6 year olds.  It is amazing how when the first wanted to boy wanted to be a pilot, and the first girl wanted to be a horse back rider, that the remaining students all followed suit.  Challenging times followed as parents said farewell to their children for the start of this year. 

Welcome (back) from Black Forest Academy Videos on Vimeo.

We have landed and work has begun!

We arrived safely with all our bags at 11:10am on Wednesday.  By noon we had dropped our bags off at our new home, Hauptstrasse 55, 79400 Kandern, Germany, and were at a luncheon for TeachBeyond being held at BFA.  Rob started work at 12:30 and arrived home at 4:30.  The Kraines blessed us with a delicious dinner, that most of us stayed awake for.  Since then, Rob has been at the office 8-6 as the staff has been working diligently to ensure that the school is ready for the start of school next week.  New student orientation is Monday and opening ceremonies and the start of school are Tuesday.  This means that some students will be arriving Sunday and the remainder will be traveling in on Monday.  Please pray for the students to have safe travel and the time and opportunity to say good bye to family and friends.